Secret to success? Don't ask, don't tell

Wood Fire wins chili cook-off, but ingredients remain a secret.

Wood Fire wins chili cook-off, but ingredients remain a secret.

February 08, 2006|JEFF ROMIG Tribune Staff Writer

DOWAGIAC -- It didn't matter that her restaurant wouldn't be serving chili again for another year. Cheryl Horiuchi wasn't giving up the ingredients that made the Wood Fire Italian Trattorria's chili the winner of this past weekend's Chili Cook-off in Dowagiac. "I'm not giving up the secret ingredients," Wood Fire's chef said Tuesday afternoon. Vickie Phillipson, who runs Dowagiac's Chamber of Commerce, announced that Wood Fire received the most votes of the four restaurants that participated in the competition, which was part of Dowagiac's 10th annual Ice Time Festival. Wood Fire's chili certainly made an impression on Phillipson. "It was awesome," she said Tuesday. "The spices gave you two different taste sensations." But Phillipson wouldn't reveal the order of finish for the other three participants. The premise of the competition is simple. Festival-goers were invited to stop by the four participating restaurants -- Beeson Street Bar & Grill, The Fraternal Order of the Eagles, Wood Fire Italian Trattorria and the Wounded Minnow Saloon -- between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. After they'd tried chili from all four, they were asked to complete the following sentence on the chili ballot: My favorite chili was served by (fill in name). Jeremy Erb, chef at Wood Fire, said Saturday that he spent several hours on the Internet Wednesday to find chili recipes with "off-the-wall" ingredients. Then, after some discussion, he and Horiuchi, Wood Fire's other chef, nailed the final recipe on their first try. "It turned out brilliant," said Erb, who offered their chili both with and without beans. The patrons agreed. But Horiuchi said winning was great, but also expected. "Because our goal is always to have the best of whatever it is we're serving," she said.Staff writer Jeff Romig: jromig@sbtinfo.com (269) 687-7001